Lynn C. Woolsey: “I urge my colleagues, I plead with my colleagues, to oppose this amendment that would put the Mexico City policy back…”

“I urge my colleagues, I plead with my colleagues, to oppose this amendment that would put the Mexico City policy back into this bill, that would put the language that gags foreign private organizations from using their own funds, and I want to repeat this, using their own funds to educate women and families about reproductive choices and options, including birth control options. International family planning operations provide women in foreign countries with access to maternal care, clinic health services, education and counseling, programs that reduce the need for abortion in the first place. At the very least, we should allow organizations that participate in family planning programs to use their own private funds to provide information and services for women and their families. Mr. Chairman, if we truly care about women and children, we will support international family planning. Without it, women in developing nations will be forced to make unconscionable choices.”